Nagmahal, Nasaktan, Nagtagumpay

Sino nga ba ang hindi nagmahal? At sino din ba ang hindi nasaktan? Ngunit ilan lang ba ang nagtagumpay?

Sabi nila, ang pag-ibig ay parang sugal... May nananalo, may natatalo. Kaya bago mo ipusta ang iyong puso sa pag-ibig, dapat kang maging handa sa posibilidad na pwede kang masaktan!

Nabubuhay tayo sa panahon na kung saan namamayagpag ang Korean-dramas, which usually gives us a picture of love as mere emotion. Please don't get me wrong, I'm also watching K-dramas and let myself feel "kilig." But at the end of the day, life will bring us back to the reality that love is not all about that. Certainly, romance, marriage, and even physical intimacy between spouses are a part of love, but they are not the full expression of love that's essential to God's nature.

God's love includes sacrifice; in fact, love and sacrifice cannot be separated (1 John 4:10).

Marahil naiisip ninyo ang inyong mga magulang kapag nababanggit ang "sacrificial love." That's true, our parents have sacrificed so many things for our sake because we are their children. But what about to other people? Do they have the same level of compassion to them?

We cannot deny the truth that there's love not based on mere emotions and unconditional as well, just freely given, though undeserved. The greatest love has ever told --The love of God for mankind, also known as "Agape Love."

What is agape love? It is beautifully described in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.

(Agape) Love is patient, (agape) love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. (Agape) Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Ito ang uri ng pag-big na nagbigay daan sa ating kaligtasan at patuloy na nagbabago sa ating pamumuhay.

Jesus died in the lowest form of death, after being humiliated and tortured mercilessly. What's the reason behind this? Simply because He loves us! He loves us so deeply to the extent of sacrificing His own life so that He may take us to be with Him forever. So ayon, meron po talagang forever! Jesus has made true love possible.

"God's love cannot be stopped by death; in fact, it is in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ that we see the power of His love." -Ed Stetzer

As we receive the love of Christ in our lives, we'll willingly let it change the way we live. His love becomes our way of life. Our highest purpose in life is to love God and others (1 John 4:21).

Ang Panginoong Hesus ay nagmahal...

At sa ating kasalanan Siya ay nasaktan...

Ngunit Siya'y muling nabuhay at nagtagumpay!  

 "I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ."

-Ephesians 3:17-18

WHY?

"I deserve an explanation! I need an acceptable reason!" This is one of the famous lines from a movie. And I suppose, this is what most people believe in as well. 

Have you experienced being turned down by the company you applied to and they didn't disclose the reasons? Well, this just shows a contradiction to what we assume we deserve. It's just work anyway. You still have many chances for employment.

But what if something happens beyond human control? Have you come to a point in your life when you asked God WHY?

It is not wrong to seek for answers as long as we do it from pure hearts. Yet, we ask God this heavy question "WHY?" with blame, as if He was the One induced our sufferings. 

Suffering can afflict anyone, even those who are favored by God. We might have suffered or are still suffering from various situations. We might even wonder why one person suffers more than another. 

It's very clear in the Bible that suffering is not part of God's purpose for mankind (James 1:13). Sin carries punishment and consequences. Humanity experiences the effects of sin from the first couple to generations afterwards.

When things fall apart, we even try to perceive the mind of God on our own in order to give us some relief. But is that what God really wants from us? God doesn't think the way human thinks (Isaiah 55:8).

In order to live in peace, we need to give an end with the presumption that we need to know everything. It's okay not to know all the answers yet. If everything was spelled out, who would need to walk by faith? What we really need is to trust God in everything and believe that all things work together for those who love Him (Romans 8:28). We may not get the answers directly, but by reverence to The Word of God, we can gain wisdom. Wisdom that enables us to think His thoughts. Such wisdom comes from His Spirit, who alone can search the depths and reveal His mind. Moreover, heaven is part of the timeline of our life, and when we meet God face to face, we can finally get all the answers to our questions. 

Here's what we can know for now:

God is Holy and Good.
God is just.
God is in control.
God is everything and the Only thing we need.
God's grace is enough to cover all our pain.
God loves us so much!

The next time something painful happens, instead of asking God the big question "WHY?" It is well to declare this, "Lord, I may not understand why this is happening to me, but I want you to know that I chose to put my trust in You." Putting our circumstances in the hand of the Lord is like trading the pain, confusion, and anxieties into joy.

"Blessed is the one who trusts in the Lord,

whose confidence is in Him.

They will be like a tree planted by the water 

that sends out its roots by the stream

It does not fear when heat comes;

its leaves are always green.

It has no worries in a year of drought

and never fails to bear fruit."

(Jeremiah 17:7-8)